What price democracy at Edinburgh Council? – Cllr Iain Whyte

The council moved into a new phase of Covid-19 lockdown last week. While you can’t yet use the civic recycling centre, we have held a committee meeting. By video conference from our various homes – but a version of democracy, webcast and open to the public nonetheless.

We had two major disagreements at the meeting and the upshot was to freeze most councillors out of the decision and pass it to just three people. Worse still, those three people will decide in private.

At the meeting I called for three things of huge importance to the people of Edinburgh to be reported to councillors. How we are doing with support for businesses, what the traffic levels are in the city and most pressingly, how Covid has affected our care homes and their vulnerable residents.

All these are being looked at by management so it should not be hard to inform councillors and the public. But outrageously this was rebuffed. Instead, the chief executive is to decide what we are told along with the SNP council leader and his deputy. Aren’t councillors meant to hold the chief executive to account? And why should politicians with a vested interest in making things look good get to decide what facts the public see?

Then there was road closures and changes to traffic to allow us to socially distance as we gradually return to normal. There was much rowing back on the plan previously championed by SNP and Green politicians as a start to a permanent transformation of the city. Officers now say it is just a “list of suggestions”.

We exposed that no-one had spoken to employers yet about their needs for staff to travel to offices. The council hasn’t even done this for its own staff! No assessment had been made of the road space needed at junctions for pedestrians and cyclists to socially distance. No updated assessment of longer journey routes around closed roads or the displaced traffic has been made. And the proposed hierarchy of reasons for change did not prioritise helping pedestrians in local shopping streets.

A plan like this should have full consultation with the public and business and proper scrutiny in public for each decision. Not a bit of it, according to the SNP. We should just have a maximum of five days for public comment then the chief executive will implement decisions on the SNP leader’s say so.

How did a minority SNP/Labour administration sneak this undemocratic approach through? The Greens who voted with them and, worse still, the Liberal so-called “Democrats” joined them on the transport issue. Small minorities who are happy to ditch democracy if they think it will get them what they want.

We Conservatives called for any road closures to be decided in public, at committee. Politicians could then make their view known and decide in a transparent way whether to press ahead. They can agree with public comment or reject it.

There is an old political theory dating back to Machiavelli about tyrants using emergency situations to take all power to themselves.

Whether or not you agree with plans for road closures in Edinburgh I am sure you support openness and the democratic process. We are sticking to it. Maybe the public of Edinburgh should remind those other parties that they were elected to represent them, not dictate to them.

Cllr Iain Whyte is the leader of the Conservative Group on Edinburgh City Council